Münchhausen trilemma
E829818
The Münchhausen trilemma is a philosophical argument about the impossibility of providing a certain, ultimate justification for any truth claim, since all justifications end in infinite regress, circular reasoning, or arbitrary axioms.
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
epistemological problem
ⓘ
philosophical argument ⓘ trilemma ⓘ |
| addresses |
limits of rational justification
ⓘ
problem of ultimate justification ⓘ structure of epistemic justification ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs | Agrippa’s trilemma NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
everyday empirical beliefs
ⓘ
mathematical axioms ⓘ metaphysical claims ⓘ moral claims ⓘ scientific theories ⓘ |
| associatedWith | Hans Albert NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| conclusion | foundational certainty for knowledge claims cannot be achieved by justification alone ⓘ |
| coreClaim | no ultimate, certain justification for any truth claim is possible ⓘ |
| critiquedBy |
coherentists
ⓘ
foundationalists ⓘ infinitists ⓘ |
| field |
epistemology
ⓘ
theory of justification ⓘ |
| implication | all systems of justification rest on unproven assumptions, circularity, or regress ⓘ |
| influencedBy |
Agrippa’s five modes
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
ancient Pyrrhonian skepticism ⓘ |
| influences |
anti-foundationalist positions
ⓘ
critical rationalism ⓘ fallibilism ⓘ |
| logicalForm | trilemma with three exhaustive and problematic alternatives ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Baron Münchhausen NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| option1 | infinite regress of justifications ⓘ |
| option2 | circular reasoning ⓘ |
| option3 | arbitrary stopping point or dogmatic axiom ⓘ |
| presupposes | that justification must terminate or continue ⓘ |
| relatedConcept |
axiomatic systems
ⓘ
basic beliefs ⓘ epistemic circularity ⓘ regress problem ⓘ self-referential justification ⓘ |
| relevantTo |
coherentism
ⓘ
foundationalism ⓘ infinitism ⓘ metaphilosophy ⓘ philosophy of science ⓘ skepticism ⓘ |
| statesThat | every attempt to justify a belief leads to one of three unsatisfactory options ⓘ |
| supportsView |
that justification is structurally problematic
ⓘ
that knowledge is at best fallible ⓘ |
| usedInArgumentAgainst |
foundationalism
ⓘ
the possibility of absolute justification ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.